Diners

I have rarely gone wrong eating in a diner. I have found that the best place for diners is in NJ. Only once have I been disapponted and have never returned. Poster in another forum mentioned that in a chain success can depend a great deal on the manager. That is very true. If the boss do't give a hoot, staff won't give a hoot. And customer will be POed and not return or recommend place to others.

I tend to watch Triple D religiously, not becuase I think Guy is even remotely amusing, but becuase my job takes me to a few different cities a year. I try to search this site for diners as well and have found a few. Fortunately for me none of these places qualifies as the staff not giving a hoot. I think that the bread and butter of a diner, those that have survived the economic downturn, is that tey are are heavily frequented by the local populace who know what they like. I will always choose a diner over a chain (Cracker Barrel being the exception) or a run of the mill restaurant. I cruise the strip malls near my hotel and usually find something to write home about.

Scrolling down from the top, in the "Goodfellas" clip, "The beginning". It's supposed to be 1963 but, they're leaning on the trunk of a '65 Chevy. I know because I owned one in 1965. Also, There were no 747's flying in 1963. Boeing didn't start flying the 747 until the late 70's http://aht.seriouseats.co...storia-queens-nyc.html

I live in Jersey now, and am within walking distance of a very popular diner. I find myself eating there many times each month. It's always packed with families, cops, tables full of kids sports teams, teenagers goofing around. During the week after the hurricane, it was a quasi community center. The entire town was there charging phones and having hot meals. It's really nice to have it there. It's always open, always friendly, and my kid loves it. My only complaint: the food sucks. I guess you can't have everything.

While my own diner experience is limited, I can recommend the Park Place Diner in Denver PA. Six of us ate there on our last trip to Lancaster PA for the quilt show. We always go to Denver to drop a few dollars at Sauder's Fabric Shop and look for local places to have lunch. Park Place (formerly Zinn's Diner) has a large menu and we were all pleased with the quality of the food and our experience there.

I know that Jersey has the MOST Diners, mostly they are the large post 1965 style w/ a gazillion things on the menu. I personally prefer the New England style of 30-60 seats for a more true interactive Diner experience. This said, almost all of the classic Diners were made in NJ (except Worcester Dining Car Co. and Sterling) and shipped all over the East Coast. My favs for food and experience are the A1 Diner (Worcester DCC) in Gardiner, ME-The Modern Diner (Sterling Streamliner) in Pawtucket, RI-Quintessence Diner (Fodero DCC) in Albany, NY which is now closed as Albany Med bought the land for expansion-future unknown.

Have either of you two Dallas gents ever been to Wingfield's Breakfast and Burgers? It is a tiny early 1960's Valentine Co. built Diner (Wichita, Kansas) that gets rave reviews for the burgers, I don't believe they serve breakfast though. I guess it's not in the best part of town from reading reviews. The single is a 1/2 pounder. Wingfield's Breakfast & Burger 2615 S Beckley Ave Dallas, TX 75224 (214) 943-5214

I've been there and have to say, their burgers are very, very good. A good, 1/2 lb good! But they are not a "diner" in any way shape or form. Just a (very busy) burger place in a hispanic neighborhood in the Oak Cliff section of Dallas.

The closest thing we have to a real diner in Dallas is the "Original Market Diner". But, its open for breakfast and lunch only. The food is excellent during its open times but in addition to not serving dinner, it's too far away from the populated demographic area it would draw from. http://originalmarketdiner.com/Home.html

After looking at their new website, I see they're now open for dinner Thur-Sat.

Yes, they are a little pricey but they have a prime location in a very "pricey 'hood": 22207. And, they certainly don't skimp either on their portions or the quality of their food; e.g., the cheese and cold cut leftovers from their $12 chef's salad were always more than sufficient for another meal!

Here's their DDD segment: http://www.metro29diner.com/diners.html that gives you the 'flavor' of this wonderful enterprise. If it could be duplicated here in one of our equivalent 'hoods: the Park Cities, Lakewood, or North Dallas; it would be "a destination".

PS; Have the chicken parm paninni served with the (best) skinny fries with a ton of fresh, finely minced chopped garlic and parsley sprinkled on top. And, a garlic mayo dipping sauce on the side. Bring mints!

A great meal and, a great deal! Plus, I loved the article about the O'Mahony diners. I truly believe the diner I grew up with in Cedarhurst, L.I. was one of their smaller "Westbury" diners. I've been told it's been, long gone.

Jim, Did you ever go to Bob and Edith's Diner in Arlington, Va? Not factory built, but a great post party 24Hr place. Spent a "few" late nights (early morning?) at the counter in the 80's. Chris

Most definitely, yes -- especially during my mid-life crisis phase of dating "recent college graduates" back in the '90's. Both activities were exhausting!

(I assume you are talking about their original place on Columbia Pike near the Sheraton and the Navy Annex. That place is legendary for post 2 A.M. 'hangover prophylaxis'. In the late '90's they also opened a second, much larger place in an old Roy Rogers down the Pike between George Mason & Four Mile Run. Much different vibe there.).

No, The original one. My other late night haunts were Bob's Diner (Bob's Beef House-a 40's factory built Diner) and the Howard Johnson's, both in Fairfax Circle.

Bob's Beef House! One night about 30 years ago I dined there alone and had a traditional filet - bacon wrapped and served on toast. What a late-night treat! As there were few in the 'house', the owner walked through and introduced himself as Dean Martin's brother.

He looked like Dean, drank like Dean, and knew a helluva lot about Steubenville, Wheeling, and Pittsburgh; so, I guess he was!